Sock yarn is amazing, but with so many colours, brands and types out there, it can be hard to decide which one to cast on! When I first contemplated knitting socks, I found the sheer range of options available completely overwhelming. I also soon realised that even the recommended yarns in some knitting patterns, books and magazines were often not the best choice. They might be photogenic or otherwise covetable, but they often didn’t have the qualities that I was looking for in a sock yarn.
It took a long time of trial and error to figure out which yarns work best. When it comes to socks, my requirements are strength and durability, a decent price, and an appealing colour-palette. (Check out my tutorial video How To Choose Sock Yarn for much more information about this.)
Let me share my favourite sock yarns with you
Even after learning to make more savvy yarn choices, I often wished that I had a knowledgeable, experienced knitty friend who could just tell me which yarn to buy! To overcome analysis-paralysis, I now stick to a list of reliable favourite sock yarns. In this video, I share my 10 favourite sock yarn brands with you, plus explain why exactly I love to knit with them.
These favourite sock yarns include budget-friendly British brands, mass-produced superwash wools with amazing colour ranges, and a few ‘indie dyers’ too, who create amazing colour effects in small artisanal batches.
I’ve knitted with all these yarns many times, and even designed patterns with many of them. I’m really happy to recommend them, and hope it helps you to knit more socks!
Grab something nice to drink, and a project, and enjoy the video 🙂 (Click here to jump to the list of sock yarns.)
Favourite sock yarns: video show notes
As you can see from the video, I’ve designed several sock knitting patterns using these yarns. Scroll down for the full list of yarns, and to see more photos of the finished projects.
Due to the soaring costs of a pint of beer in the UK in 2022, sock yarn is almost the same price as pint…depending on whether you’re buying 50g or 100g!
My purple vintage-style lace sweater pattern is from A Stitch in Time vol.I by Susan Crawford & Jane Waller (click here for my old Ravelry project page).
I also mention Monkey socks, a free pattern by Cookie.- I’ve made several versions in the past. (See old Ravelry project pages for mauve, black & red FOs).
Here’s an Infograph for the difference between a ball, hank & skein. I’ll make a version of this for The Crimson Stitchery soon – it’s on my to-do list 😉
My 10 favourite sock yarn brands: the list
British yarn brands and budget-friendly sock yarn options
1. Fyberspates Coop Knits Socks Yeah!
75% wool, 25% Nylon; 4-ply & DK weights available
Coming in at Number One, Coop Knits Socks Yeah! is a real favourite because of its dynamic colour range. I love how it includes so much variety, from soft and gentle tones, to bright neons, to fully-saturated flat colours. I explored this palette in designs for my Warm Weather Socks collection: the Twister Lolly Socks has 2 samples both in Socks Yeah! knit in a heathered blue and an acidic neon yellow. I highlighted the crispness of the yarn through simple lace and twisted rib textures.
2. WYS (West Yorkshire Spinners) Signature 4-ply
75% wool (includes approx 35% Blue Faced Leicester fibre), 25% Nylon
I used WYS Signature 4-ply on the sample for my Red Brick Socks. This is an affordable British yarn which has the added benefit of containing 35% Blue Faced Leister wool. I really love it when yarn companies offer information about wool breeds, and BFL is a very special one due to its lustrous, soft and strong fibres.
3. Cygnet Truly Wool Rich 4-ply
75% wool, 25% polyamide Schachenmayr
Popular European sock yarns
4. Regia 4-fädig (4-ply)
75% wool, 25% polyamide
5. Opal yarns 4-ply sock
75% wool, 25% polyamide
6. Schoppel Wolle Crazy Zauberball
75% wool, 25% polyamide
7. Lang Yarns Jawoll
75% wool, 25% polyamide
British / UK-based indie yarn dyers for artisanal sock yarn
8. Travelknitter Supersock
75% Bluefaced Leicester wool, 25% Nylon
9. The Wool Kitchen 4-ply sock
80% Bluefaced Leicester wool, 20% bamboo
I used a semi-solid shade of The Wool Kitchen’s hand-dyed yarn for the trainer-sock sample of my Curly Wurly Socks knitting pattern. I was really drawn by this unusual sock yarn base: the use of bamboo as a reinforcing fibre, combined with my favourite BFL wool seemed like a winning combination! The yarn was delightful to knit with, and I can’t wait to use it more in the future.
An unusual sock yarn!
10. Onion Nettle Sock Yarn
70% wool, 30% nettle fibre
My Curly Wurly Socks sample was the first time I’d used Onion Nettle Sock yarn – although I’d been eyeing it up on the shelves of my local yarn shop for absolutely ages! Nettle is an extremely strong plant fibre, so it’s the perfect choice for a non-Nylon, plastic-free sock yarn. I found Onion Nettle Sock to be rather dense and it certainly felt like a very strong fabric whilst I was knitting. After 2 years of wear I can attest that it’s been highly durable, and the socks have been a great success. I’ll definitely be using it again.
Sock knitting resources
I hope this offers you some new yarns to try out when knitting your next pair of socks. As you can see, I’ve knit with these yarns many times, and I only ever recommend yarns that I truly love in my knitting patterns.
If you need more help, I have lots of video tutorials and helpful resources to guide you on your sock knitting journey. Browse the tutorials page to find videos, or check out…
- How to choose sock yarn
- The tools & equipment you need to knit socks
- Stretchy cast on tutorial (perfect for knitting socks!)
You might also find the Yarn weight conversion chart and the Knitting needle size conversion chart helpful.
Go forth and knit socks!
